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Denmark
Denmark is a country in Northern Europe. It is a nation of islands, with its capital of Copenhagen on the largest island of Zealand. It controls the northern part of the Jutland peninsula, as well as its more distant islands of Bornholm (farther east in the Baltic), the Faeroes (in the North Sea), and Greenland. It is surrounded by the North and Baltic seas, to the west and east respectively. It borders the German Empire to the south, Sweden to the northeast and Norway to the north. It maintains a personal union over its former territory Iceland and has good relations with its partners in the German Mitteleuropa, especially Sweden. History The Danish defeat in the second German-Danish War of 1864, after which Denmark had to cede Schleswig-Holstein and Oldenburg to Prussia and Austria, led to the country's withdrawal into neutrality and to pressure for reforms within. Denmark had been a constitutional monarchy already since 1849. Liberals and Social Democrats begun strengthening the parliament starting from 1901. Economically, Denmark focused on expanding its agriculture which became the most important part of their exports. During the Weltkrieg the country remained neutral and continued the democratization process, introducing a fairly democratic constitution in 1915. However, Denmark's neutrality was encroached on by Germany, who forced it to mine the Skagerrak and other territorial waters against the British. The primarily Socialdemokratiet governments after the Weltkrieg laid the foundations for a welfare state that was patterned after the example of Sweden and secured the population one of the highest standards of living in the world. The opposition has controlled the Rigsdag since before the turn of the century, and the king has not been completely sidelined as a political force, thus ensuring a system of checks and balances. Politics King of Denmark: Christian X Prime Minister: Thorvald Stauning Minister of Foreign Affairs: Peter Munch Minister of Finance: Alsing Andersen Minister of Justice: Karl Kristian Steincke Head of the General staff´s intelligence section: Erik Mertz Minister of War: Wilhelm W. Prior Chief of the Royal Danish Army: Erik With Marine Minister: Hjalmar Rechnitzer Chief of the Royal Danish Air Force: K.W. Essemann Military The Danish army comprises of four infantry and one cavalry division. These are small divisions, and can hardly be used to hold off one enemy on one front. The Danish navy is large but outdated, and contains ten submarines, fifteen destroyers, two light cruisers, and five armored cruisers. These can probably defeat another Scandinavian nation or keep Russia bottled up in the Baltic, but against the Republican Navy or Kaiserlich Marine would lose quickly. Denmark has no organized air force. Foreign Relations Denmark maintains cordial relations with Germany, and is part of the German Mitteleuropa economic bloc. There is still bitterness about the loss of Schleswieg, however, especially from the more nationalist parties. Very good relations with Norway. Friendly relations with Germany, Sweden, and Finland. Colonies and Dependencies In 1874, Denmark granted Iceland home rule, which was expanded in 1904. However, Iceland is not recognized as a fully sovereign state and remains under the control of the Danish king. Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, make up the remainder of the Danish colonial empire after the Danish West Indies were sold to the United States. Category:Countries Category:European countries Category:Monarchies Category:Mitteleuropa